Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-03

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In many countries, primary and secondary schools close for two months or more in the summer holidays.

What is the value of long school holidays?

What are the arguments in favour of shorter school holidays?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Student answer (Band 6.5)

Indubitably, holidays are the favourite part of a year as per children's mindset. In several nations, primary and secondary institutions are shut down for two months or more in the summer holidays. In this essay, I will articulate the importance of long school holidays and the perspectives to favour shorter holidays in the subsequent paragraphs.

At the outset, there are multiple merits of long school leaves and the first and foremost is students get sufficient time to develop new skills apart from their academics. To explain it more, during these days, children can simply utilize their time to learn about their interests and can work on pursuing them. For example, a child can learn swimming or dancing, simply as their preferences. Moreover, they can travel across the world with their parents to gain knowledge about the world and different cultures depending on their likings which helps in generating new ideas for their career.

On the contrary, there are various arguments in favour of shorter school holidays and the major one is they do not affect learners academic progress. To be more precise, the higher number of leaves tend to reduce individual's interest in studies as they lie in their homes and use mobile phones throughout the entire day which leads them to lower productivity in their subjects. For instance, kids get so fond of online content that it gets challenging for them to continue academics after the break is over. Furthermore, shorter breaks provide enough time for a child to relax and play without affecting their habit and consistency of following a proper timetable and routine each day as just after few days, they are aware that they need to study and go back to school.

To recapitulate, although there are numerous benefits of long school breaks including developing skills and travelling the world, nevertheless it remains debatable and people argue against it to give shorter school holidays in order to not affect learning progress and habits of students.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response addresses both parts of the prompt: the value of long holidays and the arguments for shorter ones. The ideas are relevant and generally well-developed. For instance, you discuss skill development and cultural exposure for long holidays, and academic consistency for shorter ones. However, the development could be more nuanced; for example, the argument regarding 'mobile phones' is a bit narrow. To reach a higher band, ensure that your position is consistently clear throughout the essay. While you mention both sides, a more explicit stance in the introduction or conclusion would strengthen the response.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. You use a range of cohesive devices such as 'At the outset', 'Moreover', 'On the contrary', and 'To recapitulate' to guide the reader. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the two main viewpoints. However, some transitions feel slightly mechanical, and the referencing could be smoother. For example, the phrase 'nevertheless it remains debatable' in the conclusion is a bit redundant given the previous sentence structure. Overall, the progression of ideas is clear and easy to follow.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate a sufficient range of vocabulary to discuss the topic with some precision. Phrases like 'articulate the importance', 'academic progress', and 'consistency of following a proper timetable' are effective. There are some minor issues with word choice and collocation, such as 'holidays are the favourite part of a year as per children's mindset' (which is slightly unnatural) and 'simply as their preferences'. While you attempt some less common vocabulary, there is room for more sophisticated, academic collocations to elevate the tone of the essay further.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, which is appropriate for this task. There are several error-free sentences, and your control of grammar is generally good. However, there are occasional errors, such as 'the higher number of leaves tend to' (subject-verb agreement error: 'number' is singular) and 'shorter school holidays in order to not affect' (split infinitive, though common, could be more formal as 'so as not to affect'). Punctuation is generally accurate, but some sentences could be tightened to improve flow and clarity.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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